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Thousands of peasants and dissidents of the Farc met this Saturday, Baril 15, in the south of Colombia, in anticipation of a great concentration to affirm his “sincere and real commitment” of negotiate peace with the government of Gustavo Petro.
(See: How much money Colombia would need to repair the victims).
“In Colombia you can make peace from the territories but a peace with social justice“, the rebel commander known by his nom de guerre Andrey Avendaño told reporters.
“Our commitment to peace in Colombia has always been firm (…) it is sincere, it is real“, stressed Avendaño, head of the 33rd Front.
He was speaking, along with several other commanders, on behalf of the Central Staff (EMC), the main splinter group of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which refused to sign the 2016 peace agreement between the then government of Juan Manuel Santos and the Marxist guerrilla.
The military chiefs of the EMC have met since the beginning of April in San Vicente del Caguan, in the Caquetá region, a historical stronghold of the Farc, to define its strategy in future peace talks with the Government.
(See: The dispute over the memory (and the body) of Jorge Eliécer Gaitán).
At the initiative of President Petro, since January 1 it was agreed a six-month bilateral ceasefire with the main factions of the Farc dissidents, as well as with other armed groups.
In the middle of last week, the Government announced that the peace process with the EMCs was “consolidating“.
For their part, the rebels are organizing for this Sunday a great concentration with the communities and peasant organizations of the regions that are under their control.
“We are invited by the communities to respond to some concerns” about the ongoing peace process, Avendaño assured.
He announced that on Sunday they will announce the conclusions of a recent “commanders meetingabout his aspirations in the future dialogue table and will announce a date for the start of negotiations.
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“We are very concerned about the repeated violations of the ceasefire by government forces, but we hope that this will be resolved with the establishment of a verification mechanism starting next April 26.“, indicated another EMC commander, Danilo Alvizu, also called by his nom de guerre.
Farc dissidences.
According to this rebel chief, the EMC expects the communities to monitor compliance with the truce.
On the eve of the great rally, thousands of people from various social and peasant organizations camped out Saturday night on a farm in the San Vicente del Caguan region, the agency confirmed. AFP.
The rebel commanders, surrounded by their armed escorts, occupied the farm, while in the immediate vicinity preparations for the meeting were accelerated, with sound equipment, a stage and portraits of its deceased historical leaders.
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It is estimated that the dissident guerrillas number at least 3,000 and they operate mainly in the Amazon, on the Pacific coast and on the border with Venezuela.
Under the command of who calls himself Ivan Mordisco, EMC dissidents have federated in recent months at least three other rebel fronts operating in various regions of the country.
Colombia is experiencing a conflict that pits guerrillas, drug traffickers, paramilitaries and state agents against each other with a balance of more than nine million victims in six decades.
AFP
